


Nothing But an Aching Soul

by yaoi_yaoieverywhere



Series: Soul Bound Works [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Difficult Decisions, M/M, Rare Pairings, Soul Bond, Wish for Disney but Remember Ghibli, sloooooooowly meanders towards romance, soul eyes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-18
Updated: 2015-06-01
Packaged: 2018-03-18 09:33:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 10,635
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3564752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yaoi_yaoieverywhere/pseuds/yaoi_yaoieverywhere
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There's a whole paragraph in the article about Ushijima that says exactly why you can't see the Soul Gem in his eye- he's constantly half-lidded, and apparently it's hidden somewhere under his eyelids. It details what it looks like, amber and black opal marbled in the shape of a feather. It also says that he will not respond to any rumors about so-and-so having a supposed 'match' to his gem.</p><p>It's too bad Hinata doesn't read that paragraph.</p><p>(In which Hinata and Ushijima are soul mates, of a kind, but neither notices until someone else points it out to them. Which takes a while, because while Hinata has eyes open wider than the moon and his soul gem on display, Ushijima never opens his eyes wide enough unless he's terribly excited about a strong opponent. Oh, and Hinata's family business is inspecting these 'soul gems' so he sort of pairs up people along the way.)</p><p>(Comms Open, check Profile)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. eye don't see you

**Author's Note:**

> Did you know Shiratori means Swan? Due to the manga's use of mascots in teams names (Nekoma and Karasuno come to mind) Ushijima's depiction as a white eagle is sort of weird, but eh. I suppose Swans are considered too pretty despite their frightfully strong wings. And Ushijima is no where near as pretty as Akaashi~ wwww
> 
> Draft Title was "Sribbbledy Scrabble, Where is my Drabble?!" and I still think that's funny tbh

"One thing you must always do," Shouyou's mother had told him, gently wiping his face free of dirt and ridding his hair of twigs one by one in spaces between words, "Is look each person you meet in the eye. It's not to be polite, but to find something."

"Something, mama?"

"Your soul-bound, Shouyou. They'll come and go if your forget to look in their eyes." Gripping his face, she turned it upwards and looks into his wide eyes. "And always remind yourself what your eyes look like in the morning. Memorize the gem that binds you. It's the most beautiful thing you'll ever possess," and here she smiled crookedly. "And no one will ever take it from you, not even your soul-bound."

"Sooo... If I don't want them, I'll still have my gem?"

"Yes. Don't be afraid living for you and you alone." There's something like steel in those words, unbreakable and made by human hands.

"I want them though! How long do I have to wait?"

"No one knows. But I think you've got a ways to go, little bird."

"I'm not little!"

"Of course not, birdie."

"Tell me about my gem, mama."

It was an almost unknown fact that the Hinata family (his mothers maiden name, which she had clung to all this time) had been something of soul gem horoscope makers, of a kind, for a dozen or so generations. It was a case by case basis instead of a zodiac sort of thing, but the type of gem(s) factored greatly into it. It required a keen eye, and sometimes diverged into matchmaking of a sort. 

Nowadays it was considered bogus, or generalized to nothing but gem type. Actual soul gem horoscope readings were rarely done- it was considered 'too intimate'. But Mama Hinata always indulged her little bird.

"Again?" 

"Yeah! Because mama's family books on gem occu... opule..."

"Optometry?"

At the watery pout she got, she laughed. "Alright, let's see." He tilted his head upwards, pupils shrinking against the light as she looked close. "It looks no different than yesterday. Like a feather of amber and blackened opal, it rests quite a ways up from your iris in your left eye. The feather, I believe, means both of you will risk failing at the chance of rising above. The mixing of amber, which is considered a less beautiful and more common jewel but a hardy preservative, and black opal, one of the rarest and most demanded of jewels, means there will be quite a bit of contrast between who you will be. But it's not a bad thing, and it's so beautiful for it, so I believe it will work out. The distance from your pupil means that you will probably not start off on the friendliest of terms, may not even know what you have until you are already so entangled that you probably will wish for them to be your gem. Troublesome, really. Do you have any other questions?"

"Yeah, what's for dinner?"

Hinata would still ask, every couple of months, for her to check. He looked in the mirror every morning and forgot to blink while he tried to figure out when he would find them. Then volleyball happened, and he didn't ask he anymore, and he only looked at his eyes every few weeks. Volleyball was more important, anyway. (Still, he never let his eyes go half mast.)

\--------------

Old habits die hard though, and he still looked for each one of his teammates gems. 

(Suga and Daichi had milk white opal stars in their pupils, and their hands entwined whenever they thought they weren't being watched. Asahi and Nishinoya had dark sapphire triangles in their irises- though apparently hadn't noticed they'd matched. Or at least, Hinata was pretty sure they matched. He didn't go to school for that or anything, but he usually matched people right. Yamaguchi had an oval shaped emerald squished between pupil and iris, and although he'd never seen Oikawa's eyes up close, Hinata thought they might match which was... terrifying.)

Kageyama had a soul gem of yellow topaz and opal in a perfect circle in the corner of his eye. It looked like a volleyball, and Hinata would keel over laughing when he finally realized that. 

When he met Kenma, he had thought he remembered seeing that same soul gem somewhere else. He brushed it off.

When Karasuno and Nekoma met for the second time, he was shocked at realizing he knew who else had that gem. So as they were warming up, he dragged Kageyama over to Kenma (who seemed sort of intimidated, which was weird, because it was just dorky Kageyama) and made them stand side by side. Kenma's eyes were turned downward, but Hinata could just see the shine of topaz and opal in the corner. Kageyama keeps glancing between Kenma and Hinata, curious but also slightly miffed.

"What's up?" Bokuto asked as he passed by, halting while tilting his head. "If you're comparing setters, why isn't Akaashi here too? I mean, he'd win, becau-"

"I'm not! Look, don't their gems look the same?" Kenma and Kageyama went still, glancing at each other. "There! White Opal and yellow Topaz, outside corner of right eye, perfect circle, sort of striped like a volleyball. You should go get checked!" Hinata chirped, seemingly unaware of the chaos he'd started. 

"Wow, they do! You've got a good eye, little guy!"

"Nah, my family is just in the business. Anyway, Akaashi wouldn't be the best setter, because Kageyama is the best! He's all like-" And he walked off with Bokuto, unaware of the tentative bond he'd created between two setters and the eavesdroppers looking wide eyed at his back.

It didn't help when he also noticed towards the end that Bokuto and Akaashi shared a horn shaped gem of Lapis Lazuli, or that Kuroo and Tsukishima had diamond shaped Rubies. You would think people would look for the gems, but Hinata guessed they just forgot.

He never stopped looking, even though he still hadn't found his own soul-bound.

\---------

There's a whole paragraph in the article about Ushijima that says exactly why you can't see the Soul Gem in his eye- he's constantly half-lidded, and apparently it's hidden somewhere under his eyelids. It details what it looks like, amber and black opal marbled in the shape of a feather. It also says that he will not respond to any rumors about so-and-so having a supposed 'match' to his gem.

It's too bad Hinata doesn't read that paragraph.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look at what I've done. God, I hope I won't butcher Ushijima too much.
> 
> I used the term soul-bound instead of soul-mate because here it's not so much a 'You Will Get Married/Fall in Love' type thing so much as it is a 'You Will Like Each Other And Impact Each Other' sort of thing. It's not always a good thing, and they don't technically have to meet you to change your life/make you like them (or vice versa) but it helps. There can be more than two people in a soul-bond but it's not like they get different gems, and people generally stop looking for matching soul gems when they've found one. But Ushijima and Hinata are gonna be in love so there! But be patient I wrote this at buttfuck in the morning and I'm probably gonna regret this tomorrow but for now I'm gonna lie down. Oh wait I already am haaah


	2. Walk By Me Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ('cause I don't believe in love at first sight)
> 
> This ended up with more OiYama than I intended... But hey! Ushijima and Hinata talk!! Astounding I know.

Finally Ushijima comes along and Hinata is stunned by him, and then a little curious, and then very quickly furious at his arrogance.

Looking directly into his gaze, Hinata is almost too furious to realize he can't see a soul gem and that his eyes are half lidded even while Hinata made his speech about sprouting from concrete. Was he hiding his gem? Did he just not give a damn? These questions rolled over in his head, slowly growing more curious than angry. Because if he was hiding it, it would make sense for it to be in a similar position to Hinata's. And maybe...

As he leaves with Kageyama (who still wears a shit-eating grin because of Hinata's little outburst) he misses when Ushijima's eyes widen in excitement as he stares after Hinata, something orange and black glinting in the light of his eyes and smirk like a razorblade.

\-------

Ushijima was not one to look for soul gems. He believed (as many people did nowadays) that fate could not determine who would matter to him, and thus, never bothered looking for his match. He hardly knew what it looked like anymore.

But then Hinata came in and he just knew that somehow, this little man would be important someday. His eyes were wide and his soul gem was displayed in full glory despite it's inconvenient position- and it was so beautiful. Ushijima couldn't stop staring.

Ushijima made it a point to watch recordings of Karasuno's matches on his own time. He wasn't any good at metaphors, but Hinata looked like sunshine and what every Ace strived to be- and he narrowed his eyes when he heard Hinata called "The Perfect Decoy" because... He wasn't quite sure he agreed. Hinata was more than a decoy somehow, maybe because he scored the most points on average, or the fact he never gave up, but it felt wrong to call him anything less than a little Ace.

Ushijima didn't look at his gem after meeting Hinata. Maybe he was a little afraid they wouldn't match. (Maybe he was more afraid they would.)

\-------

You wouldn't expect Hinata and Ushijima to meet at the supermarket while shopping for their mothers, but, well. Sometimes these things happen.

"Ah!" Hinata yelps when he sees Ushijima, because of course he sees him first. "Ushiwaka-chan!" And then proceeds to try and hide behind a pile of produce- avocadoes, this time. And Natsu, sweet, vicious little Natsu, decides now is the time to meet Ushijima. So she deliberately lets go of Hinata's shirt and starts towards the tall, menacing, slightly ruffled figure that is Ushijima on a day off. Hinata will have no choice but to follow once he realizes she's wandered off.

Natsu stares straight up into Ushijima's face, neck tilted all the way back as she tries to look in his eyes. "Ushiwaka-chan!" She chirps, tugging his shirt to get his attention. He looks down, and frowns. 

"...Have you shrunk?" Natsu was not pleased.

"I have not! I'm Natsu, not Shou-nii! How rude!"

"Ah." Ushijima seems to consider her before kneeling to her level. "I apologize. Does your brother play volleyball?"

"Yeah! Do you?" It's at this point Hinata finally realizes Natsu is not with him and realizes exactly where she went.

"Yes. Your brother is Hinata Shouyou?" At her cheerful nod, he tilted his head. "I have not played against him yet. He must advance to the finals for us to meet," He said gravely.

"Well, you will, because Shou-nii is amazing! He's like 'Gyah!' And 'Gwaaaah!' and 'Shwam!' when he plays!" And Hinata turns the corner, eyes locking onto Natsu.

"Natsu! You can't just wander off like that!"

"But look, it's Ushiwaka-chan!"

"Natsu..." Turning to Ushijima, he fidgeted nervously as the boy rose off the ground to tower over both of them. "Was she bothering you?"

"No." His eyes narrowed at Hinata. "You are different, somehow."

"It's 'cause he's hungry," Natsu muttered, sticking her tongue out where Hinata eyed her sharply. "And we still haven't gotten everything for the hotpot!"

"Ahh, yes, excuse me Ushijima," Hinata muttered, bowing his head briefly before herding Natsu in the right direction. "I'll see you on the court." Those parting words were iron clad in contrast to his earlier demeanor, and Ushijima watched them go with a growing smirk. Yes, Hinata Shouyou for all that he had come from nothing was far more interesting than he'd ever expected. Even slightly flustered and outside the court.

\-------

Oikawa Tooru was anything but unobservant. 

He's seen Ushiwaka-chan's eyes long before he ever met Hinata Shouyou, and he knows that soul gem almost as well as his own. At first, it had been to avoid the person that would probably join Ushijima in annoying him until he joined their team (though he never would, he'd never join a team where Iwa-chan would be overlooked in favor of that cow Ushiwaka-chan).

And then he met Shouyou, who looked right in his eyes before slamming a volleyball past him with the confidence of players twice his age and none of the experience. He knew in that moment exactly who had a match- but he never said. Hinata was... He was good. He was far too good for a cow like Ushijima.

But soul gems only meant they would impact each other, which technically they already had. It didn't mean they would date or anything. And Oikawa was a little bit interested in getting to know the orange fluffball of energy...

And then Hinata snuck up next to him after Seijou's agonizing defeat by his own hands, with Yamaguchi Tadashi being dragged behind. 

"You know Yamaguchi, right Oikawa-san?" Hinata plowed on, not allowing a second for refusal. "Well, I've been thinking, I think your soul gems match. Just-" And here Hinata pushed Yamaguchi next to Oikawa and tugged both their shirt collar down until he was forced to be at eye level. "Uh-huh. Oval shaped emerald on the border of the pupil and iris, right eye... Yeah! You should go get that checked out." And then promptly wandered off, satisfied with his matchup. Yamaguchi seemed to shrink into himself, side-eyeing Oikawa tentatively. 

"Sorry about him," Yamaguchi murmured, and yes, there was the telltale green glint in his eye. "He's been doing that a lot lately."

"What, looking into people's eyes?" Ah, there was a small smirk from Yamaguchi. He was too cute for someone only a handful of centimeters away from being taller than Oikawa's massive height of six feet with his doe eyes and those stupid freckles and...

"Yes, actually. I think he's looking harder than the rest of us for his gem, and so he just... Anyway, I'm sorry to bother you, I'll just-" He stopped talking when Oikawa grabbed his hand, looking back with some confusion. Flashing a genuine smile, he snatched a pen from one of the managers (Who didn't even blink in their direction) before flipping Yamaguchi's palm over and scrawling something onto his palm.

"Don't be a stranger," Oikawa nearly purred as Yamaguchi's face turned pink. Folding Yamaguchi's fingers shut, he grinned even wider before turning and joining his team.

Iwaizumi would eye him the entire bus ride home, and when they finally got to their houses barged into Oikawa's and made a beeline for his room.

"Why, Iwa-chan, that's so forward of you!" Oikawa crooned even as he collapsed on the bed. He sighed as he felt Iwaizumi's weight settle beside him.

"Cut the crap Tooru. What were Karasuno's 10 and 12 talking to you about after the match?"

"Oh, you know. Shou-chan noticed that Yama-chan and I are matched." It's said blithely, even as he reached for his phone. The silence dragged on as he checked his phone, slowly checking text messages and email and snapchat. 

"About time," Was all Iwaizumi said, grunting as he laid down. "I bet he's going to be taller than you."

"Iwa-chan, how rude!"

"Did you tell number 10?"

"Not yet. I figure if they don't figure it out by the end of their match I'll have to do it, even if Shou-chan is connected to that stupid cow." Their conversation is cut off when the low hum of a notification made Oikawa glance back at his phone. And then another one before he could get the lockscreen open?

'Who are you and why did you give Yamaguchi your phone number & email & snapchat' ...What?

'Sorry but Tsukki saw my hand!! Could we still meet soon?' Ah! Yamaguchi! Iwaizumi groaned loudly, chucking a pillow at him even as he rolled away.

And for the night, even as he mourned their last high school match, he nursed the growing bond with the rival reserve setter happily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little note about emeralds- while absolutely gorgeous they're considered rather fragile by gemstone standards but that 'emerald retains its lively vigour in all its nuances'. Just saying...
> 
> Part of me wants to put this off until the end of Karasuno vs Shiratorizawa, but that match is gonna take f o r e v e r and a day. So I'm going to assume Karasuno wins next chapter and move from there.


	3. Fight Fight FigHT

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so glad so many people like this fic! (Is it because it's the only one in the tag besides "Kisses for Hinata"? I'm sorry) I hope you won't mind sporadic updates or stilted romance because. I'm so not good at romance. whydidIstartthisficomg

Hinata steps onto the court spitting rage, expecting Ushijima to brush him off again. But he had too many things to prove to too many people to let himself be intimidated- they would win, for Kouji and Izumi, for Nekoma, for Coach Ukai Jr. and Sr., but most of all for themselves. They were just a match away from Nationals. A breath away from no longer being 'Fallen'. 

Was it strange he thought more about proving himself to Ushijima before collapsing into bed the night before? 

He watches Ushijima spike while listening with half an ear as Kageyama muttered strategies and code words under his breath. Ushijima is undeniable strong. But they all knew that already.

What he doesn't know is how Ushijima watches him warm up, and calmly observes him slam the ball straight down without surprise. He's long since learned that Hinata was far more adaptable than most considered, and in the course of a game all bets were off. There was faith in his half-lidded eyes. Excitement stirred in his veins, and he idly wondered when Hinata's talent would be noticed by the rep teams. Ah, but for that, he'd have to make it to the finals... Maybe next year.

This was going to be a match to remember.

\--------

Asahi was starting to wonder who exactly Ushijima thought Karasuno's ace was, him or Hinata. He watched as Ushjima's eyes followed Hinata about the court after only giving him a cursory glance. He left his team to follow Asahi's movements while he stalked Hinata's every move by himself. It should have felt good to be underestimated while Hinata was being overestimated, like the perfect plan. But was it really?

The match continued, and after Hinata turned away, after Hinata scored the final point of the first round, Asahi swore he saw something black and orange in the corner of Ushijima's wide, excited eyes as Hinata wandered over to get a waterbottle. But...

\--------

Kageyama didn't like the way Ushijima talked to Hinata. When they'd first met he held a blatant (deserved) arrogance and hadn't thought they'd be able to keep up with him. He brushed off Kageyama's genius, claimed Oikawa had made the wrong choice, and hadn't considered Hinata as a player. Then Hinata swept in and stole the ball from him and they walked off before he could truly respond. 

Now Ushijima talked to Hinata with a familiar bluntness, but the similar sort of respect to the kind he gave Oikawa. Brief words between panting breaths as they pass each other during each match point. His eyes spoke of consideration, maybe even the thought of convincing Hinata to come to Shiratorizawa next year. It was infuriating as it was (hopefully) useful. 

He wondered if he was only angry because Ushijima didn't consider them a pair as everyone else had- hadn't thought Hinata depended on Kageyama's toss. But no. Kageyama himself viewed Hinata as his own person in volleyball now, what reason would he have to begrudge Ushijima the same thought?

Looking at Hinata, he watched the familiar amber and black gem disappear behind falling lids. Something in the back of his mind chimed he'd heard of that elsewhere, but why would he hear about a gem instead of see it? It lingered in his mind and nagged him when he thought about the other team, but he just couldn't place a finger on it.

\--------

Karasuno wins, and the crowd goes wild. 

Hinata and Ushijima shake hands under the net, and they barely hear the flash of a camera. 

"It's a shame we couldn't be proper rivals," Ushijima almost sighs as their hands separate, "I will be waiting for you in the professional circuit." Hinata's eyes sparkle at this remark, and Ushijima's gaze lingers on the half-familiar orange and black feather. 

"Let's hope we don't end up on the same team like Kageyama and I have," Hinata laughs before they both turn away. Another flash, except they both see this one, eyes that were open wide for the barest second blinking. They think nothing of it as they return to their teams to celebrate or mourn what was.

Oikawa is too swept up in celebrating Yamaguchi's brilliant serve to remember to tell Hinata that Ushijima's gem matches his own. When Hinata finds out, he'll roll his eyes, and mutter about how he shouldn't have played matchmaker the day before, but it'll be with a grin on his face.

\--------

 **KARASUNO WINS THE REGIONAL MALE VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT** is blared in the local newspaper's sports section, with a mention to look in their celebrities column for a related article. If you shuffle through to find it, you'll see a picture of Hinata and Ushijima smiling as they turn back to their teams where you see both their eyes clearly- and how the shape and position of their gems match. It's in black and white, but even so, it's enough for a small blurb about how this must be volleyball's new Romeo and Juliet, or maybe some romantic spin on Prince and the Pauper as Hinata is rumored to have stolen Ushijima's title as the 3rd best Ace in all of Japan even though he's a decoy and Asahi is the team's current Ace.

Ukai Keishi paws through that paper groggily the next morning, spitting his coffee to the side after spotting the picture. The rest of the team remains unaware, those who did read the paper satisfied with the headline before setting it back down. 

Oikawa hears about it from his mother that morning, and ends up laughing so hard Iwaizumi comes over to check if he's died. He'll send Yamaguchi a snapchat of the article once he's stopped wheezing...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't kill me for this quick update that's just to get us through the match that hasn't even really started yet. 
> 
> Cackles Ushijima's planning for their future already~ How cute (lol)


	4. Plan Your Attack

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *clutches your hands* I'm so sorry for taking longer than usual to update. Like, really, I am. I hope you guys don't hate me. (In quick succession, these things happened; A dozen new plotbunnies, one of my dumb hc's got over 11k notes in a handful of days, Haikyuu 152, my temporary death, T-kun's B-day at Six Flags, Parent's anniversary, Easter, and today is Ben's B-day f u c k) The story will still fumble along, b/c Ushijima seems a lil' like cardboard now, but I still love him, my cow island baby. Also OiYama is taking over my l i f e
> 
> I also apologize if you think Ushijima seems a bit wonky sounding- due to his (cardboard) mostly unknown personality, I'm drawing on Shin from E21 for his personality. Who is also a little cardboard, and a health nut, but he seems a great deal like Ushijima outwardly.

Yamaguchi wakes up to his phone crooning "She Loves You, Yeah, Yea-" and just lays there a moment in sleepy denial, the dregs of a dream involving Oikawa adoringly counting his freckles for some reason just starting to drift away. Parting his mouth slightly, he let out the most wretched sounding yawn he'd ever heard, a mix between a crow's caw and a cat's yowl. Shutting his mouth quickly, he tried to distract himself with his phone.

((ര̀ٯര́) Tooru Said: look what my ma found in the paper this morning wwww)

Blinking groggily at the text, he pondered what exactly would make Oikawa wake him up at... Squinting at the numbers on his phone's clock, he made out a "6:18". What was so important Yamaguchi had to be woken up at buttfuck in the morning the day they headed to the final tournament? Sliding his phone to unlock it, he stared at the picture for a moment. And another moment. And another.

((ര̀ٯര́) Tooru: did I tell you they matched? I noticed a while ago, but I think I forgot to tell anyone but Iwa-chan)

(Yama-chan: WAit. This is real?? Tooru! He helped us, why didn't you say anything???)

((ര̀ٯര́) Tooru: sorryyy Dashi, I totally forgot because you won yesterday~ on the bright side, you can tell him when you see him! (ര̀ٯര́))

(Yama-chan: You're pushing this on me? I am telling Iwaizumi the second I figure get his email!! don't think I won't!!!!)

((ര̀ٯര́) Tooru: Dashi pls dont do this to me think of our child and also how are you going to get it)

(Yama-chan: Tooru, I am certain Kageyama has it. Don't even lie. Also what child when did this happen)

((ര̀ٯര́) Tooru: u kno our child. the puppy I let you name)

(Yama-chan: What puppy? When did I name a puppy??)

((ര̀ٯര́) Tooru: oh right. surprise! It's a girl puppy you get to name here's a picture)

(Yama-chan: I'm leaving)

(Yama-chan: Also we're naming her Hotaru.)

((ര̀ٯര́) Tooru: ok Dashi~)

\-----------------

Ushijima wakes quietly that morning, sleeping in to seven o'clock instead of getting up in time for his usual crack of dawn jogging. In a way, it was what little sulking he allowed himself after a lost match to recuperate. Groggy with over-sleep, he lifted his head from his pillow and sighed out his nose. He woke to the soft sounds of his parents moving around in the kitchen, which he heard so rarely these days. Always so busy.

The sound of a blender whirring drew him far enough out of his thoughts to make him shuffle out from under the sheets, slowing down as he eased his bare feet onto the chilled floor.

The smell of coffee drifts down the hallway, and Ushijima scrunches his nose up in distaste. Why did papa drink that every morning? Caffeine wasn't even good for you. Quietly walking into the kitchen, he straightened up suddenly when the blender whirred to life right next to him. 

"Wakatoshi, you're up." His mother's voice was rough with sleep, and her eyes were halflidded like his. Even at this hour her hair was neatly tied back and her work clothes were spotless. Perhaps because she worked in a top billing firm as a Junior Partner, perhaps because she had always done things that way. 

"Waka-chan, g'morning..." Papa mumbled, espresso cup dangerously jiggling where it rested against his lips, still steaming. He didn't look like much, slumped over like he was, but he was actually three centimeters taller than Ushijima if he stood straight (which he never did). "S' where's this Hinata boy..."

"What do you mean?" Accepting a glass from his mother, he let her pour him some of her 'shake'. Banana, milk, vanilla, and two raw eggs made enough for the both of them. "He's heading off to the finals in Tokyo today, I assume."

"I thought you'd at least introduce him before he left, Wakatoshi." Mother huffed slightly, face blank but eyes disapproving. 

"Why?" Ushijima tried to think to why they would want to meet Hinata Shouyou. Sure, he'd been beaten by the boy, but it wasn't the first time Shirotorizawa had been defeated. And why Hinata in particular?

"Why, you say..." His papa murmured, setting the paper on the table. His finger lingered on the picture of Ushijima and Hinata turning away. Staring at it, Ushijima raised an eyebrow slightly. "What color is his soulgem, Waka-chan?"

"Orange and black," Answered automatically, while he was still studying the picture. 

"And what color is your soulgem?"

"...Uhm." He hadn't actually looked at his soulgem in... years, really. 

"The same," His mother sighed, stalking around the table to tap this picture herself. "Somehow I knew this would happen."

"It's only because you did the same thing, dear," Papa chuckled before turning his gaze back to Ushijima. "History repeats itself in the oddest ways. Congratulations, Waka-chan, you found your soulpartner. Or rather, some photographer did for you."

\-----------------

"On a scale of "huh" to "what the fuck", how do you think Hinata will react to being told Ushijima has his soulgem?"

"...Yamaguchi." Tsukishima muttered, pausing in the motion of pulling his headphones up before lowering them back down slowly.

"Yes, Tsukki?" Yamaguchi wasn't look at him, but at his phone, which was unusual in itself. He only fidgeted with his phone like this when he was extremely nervous. Tsukishima could practically see his ahoge twitch with anxiety..

"When did you find this out, exactly?"

"This morning. Tooru sent me a picture," Tsukishima still was a bit sore with Oikawa for taking half of Yamaguchi's admiration, and internally pouted at the adoration Yamaguchi said his name with, "and said he'd already suspected, so. You don't read the paper either, huh?"

"Oh." Tsukishima rubbed his eyes tiredly, glasses shoved to his hairline. "Shit a brick."

"Tsukki?!"

"He's going to shit a brick. God." Yamaguchi was looking at him for an explaination now, so he added, "How long has Hinata been looking?"

"Since... Elementary?"

"How many people has he helped match up?"

"Let's see. You and Kuroo, me and Tooru, Kageyama and Kenma, Bokuto and Akaashi, Ukai and Takeda, technically all the seniors..." Yamaguchi paused before paling. "That's... that's a lot of people."

"And that's just in the past few months." Letting his glasses drop back down, Tsukishima straightened back up. "He's going to shit a brick, because he didn't find out about Ushijima himself. I'm not even going to ask why Ushijima didn't say anything. I am going to sleep through all of it, and you are going to help me until Kuroo can take over."

"Okay, Tsukki!" Yamaguchi automatically responded, before shuddering. Maybe someone else could break the news before he got the chance? Hinata was always so happy, until he finally got pissed. He really didn't want to deal with Hinata's murderous gaze and terrifying silence.

[At the school, Ukai sneezed softly into his handkerchief. That poor coach, he hadn't even really wanted the position in the first place, and now look at the shit-storm heading his way.]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just love my sunshine child and my rich horse-golf child so much fight me (except don't I'm really sorry there's all this buildup and no sat-is-fac-tionnn). I know you probably think the shake that Ushiwaka's mum drank sounds gross, but I assure you, it actually tastes a bit like cake batter if you find the right harmony between vanilla and banana and milk. Much better than coffee. (And yes, I headcanon Ushijima as disliking bitter things, including Black Tea, Dark Chocolate, Lemon Peel, and Olives.)
> 
> Side note- Who else has seen that UshiHina comic that ends with "USHIJIMA YOU HAVE A BEAUTIFUL DICK- eh" "Um thanks"? It's my new fave hc. I'm sorry Sockpuppet!Hinata and Ushiwaka kissing fanart, I still love you.


	5. Chapter 5

Hinata wakes up with the sun and murmurs happily at the comfortable warmth in his body from early sunbeams and good nights sleep. His mother and Natsu are both still asleep, so he rolls out of bed with a soft thump and gropes for his slippers. He wanted Egg on Rice, and he intended to make it.

His mom rose shortly after, the early morning rays glinting off her low eyelashes and the amethyst in the middle of her right pupil. She accepted the mug of tea mechanically, pressing both her hands to its warmth and barely hovering her nose over the steam. Her lips quirked up as she watched him shuffle around the kitchen, fussing with the ricemaker and measuring out miso for the soup. It took a few more minutes for Natsu to rise, rubbing her right eye with the sleeve of her pirate pajamas while making loud sniffing noises as she wandered near the soup. For such a bright, welcoming family, mornings were always wordless until they got outside the house.

Soon enough his phone rang loudly, alerting him to the time. Inhaling his breakfast, Hinata barely had time to hug Natsu goodbye and receive his mother's goodbye kiss.

"Good luck, my little bird. Natsu and I will be waiting." And then he was out the door, bag slung over his shoulder as he mounted his bike to get to the bus on time. The wind was warm as he rode, and somehow he felt like today was going to change something forever- but he brushed that off as getting to the finals. His team was waiting for him...

The bus was almost too loud when he got in, and he paused only a moment to bask in the familiar voices. They were so close to victory, so close to the Battle of the Trash heap he could taste it. Nothing could bring him down.

Yamaguchi saw him first and looked a little sick. Still, Tsukishima was sitting next to him looking unworried, so he should be okay? Yamaguchi motioned for him to come over a little hesitantly. Grinning back, he weaved through the sea of flailing limps and even over a laughing Ennochita. He slid into the seat in front of the duo and slung his arms over the back of it while watching Yamaguchi fidget.

"What's up, Yamaguchi? Does your stomach hurt? Did Tsukishima feed you something Kuroo sent him again," Tsukishima glanced over to him sharply, nose wrinkling in disgust as Yamaguchi shook his head quickly.

"No, I just..." Yamaguchi glanced at Tsukishima, who elbowed him gently, "Oikawa woke me up early this morning saying he'd forgotten to tell you something."

"Hm?" Hinata's head tilted to the side and his soulgem glinted in the shifting light. "That sounds like him, heh." 

"About your soulgem," Yamaguchi confessed quietly, glance darting around the room. Hinata stilled, watching Yamaguchi squirm. "He's fairly sure he found your match. And then the papers all but confirmed it this morning."

"The papers? Why would the newspaper know before me, or at all..." Trailing off, he fixed Yamaguchi with a burrowing stare. 

"I don't know! I didn't know he or the papers knew anything until Oikawa texted me this morning!" Yamaguchi hissed frantically, trying to keep his voice down. "You know no one here really reads the local news, which might be why I'm the only one trying to talk to you about it."

"Who is it?"

"Hinata..."

"Were they in the crowd? Why didn't they come-"

"It's Ushiwaka, okay?" The silence dragged on for too long. "Ushiwaka has your gem, shape and colors and all. Look," Yamaguchi fumbled with his phone for a moment before pulling up the picture. Hinata took the phone slowly, fixated on the picture. "I know it's in black and white, but Oikawa said his gem is orange and black. Like yours."

"...But he knew what my gem looks like."

"I- Yes?"

"He's seen it a dozen times, why didn't he say anything?"

"We don't know," Yamaguchi shrugged apologetically, eyes down turned. "I wish we did."

That of course was the precise moment Ukai walked on the bus, paper in hand, eyes searching for one Hinata Shouyou. Hinata met his gaze and looked at the paper, nodding slowly. Ukai's eyes softened slightly, before tucking the paper under his arm and heading over to Takeda. Handing Yamaguchi's phone back silently, he seemed to perk back up instantaneously. 

"I can't wait to see Kenma again!" Hinata chirps, and even Tsukki seems stunned by his sudden mood swing. "It's too bad Oikawa can't come watch us, huh, Yamaguchi?"

"Y-yeah. He demanded pictures though, so..."

___________

The news slowly spreads around the team, and none of them dare to mention it to Hinata's face after Yamaguchi initial confrontation. Kageyama hears it first, from Hinata, who bemoans the fact in a convenience store bathroom, washing his face with cold water.

"I don't know what to think," He quietly admits to the running water while Kageyama stares. "He never even showed his to me, so... But I can't think of that now."

Kageyama doesn't bring it up, but inevitably Ukai's newspaper is stolen by Sugawara, who was both interested in reading the headline his team was talking about, and had a slight kleptomaniac habit that he'd never quite gotten rid of. The paper was in his hands before he even realized he wanted to take it. Of course he did more than skim, and found the picture while Hinata was at the other end of the store.

Tanaka, surprisingly enough, was the one to point out that had Hinata known and been on good terms with Ushijima would have told them immediately. He'd always been searching in the loudest way. Why wouldn't he share? Tsukishima admitted that Hinata knew because Yamaguchi had told him, on a tip from Oikawa. But he'd reacted oddly. At first, it seemed normal- questions, concerns, et cetera. But then he'd ignored it. He didn't seem to want to think about it.

So his team respects his wishes, at least for now. If Hinata didn't want to talk about it, he wouldn't, and there was no way to make him. He had too many ways to avoid what he didn't want to talk about with only his mouth. So they kept their distance, maybe perhaps a little too much.

Kageyama leaned into Hinata though. They were never apart during those long bus ride hours, slumping against one another as they slept, glued together when they finally stepped foot off the bus. Hinata seemed unchanged but for that. Kenma however... When he saw Hinata walk in he suddenly bristled, eyes flickering to Kageyama in question. 

At the end of the day Karasuno's members drifted to the houses of Fukurodani and Nekoma's members. Kageyama and Hinata were dragged off to Kenma's house, even though Hinata had originally planned to stay with Lev. Give the soul bound a little privacy. But Kenma and Kageyama insisted, and here he was.

Kenma's house was almost too quiet compared to the rest of Hinata's day. No one else was home, and there was a note from Kenma's father with a small wad of cash for dinner. Kageyama easily volunteered to order the food while leaning into Kenma. Hinata watched them both quietly. When Kageyama leaves the room, Kenma leans into Hinata and waits.

"Did Kageyama tell you?" And it's not really a question, but Kenma nods anyway. "So... What do you think?"

"I think I don't know Ushijima Wakatoshi. But I know you." Kenma's voice would have sounded detached to most people. It was soft and open to those who knew him. "Tell me about whatever this is."

"H-he..." Kageyama walks back in then, lips thin and eyes examining them both. He slides in next to Hinata again, and Hinata hesitantly continued. "He's stubborn, but honest to a fault. His spikes are amazing, you know. I ran into him at the grocery store once and he was kind to Natsu. I don't really know why he's any of those things. And for some reason, he never told me... never l-let me know we matched. He hid it? And I don't really know why, because I don't even know his email." Swallowing past the lump in his throat, he croaked "I thought it would be easy. That we would meet and just know, even if I couldn't see their gem! Because that's how it's supposed to work. We're linked."

"Did you really think that?" And his voice is blunt, but Kageyama is honestly curious. 

"I... hoped it would work like that is a better way to say it. Yeah." Kenma briefly squeezes his hand. "Everyone else I helped meet hit it off so well. So, I thought, maybe it wouldn't turn out like my mom and dad. Maybe he'd want to stay with me." Tears welled up, and he hiccuped. "I've been looking for so long! Why doesn't he want me?"

"Because he's an idiot." Kageyama says bluntly, and Hinata muffles a wet laugh.

"No, 'cause you're an idiot."

"Dumbass."

"Well, do you know what he believes about soulbonds?" Kenma asks after a minute of silence. Hinata immediately tenses, eyes darkening.

"I... I'm not sure how true it is," He mutters, almost shrinking into Kageyama, "But Yamaguchi was telling Tsukishima that Oikawa had heard Ushiwaka doesn't believe in it. H-he thinks it's mumbo-jumbo or something. Which would be funny, because my family line is all about soulgem readings." His voice grows more hollow with every word. 

"He's stupid," Kenma mutters, and Hinata snorts loudly. "You deserve better."

Their conversation ends there, because the pizza arrives and Kenma has Monster Hunter up on the hugest flatscreen Hinata's ever seen outside Bestbuy. They fall asleep like that, piled in front of the TV, with some Disney film playing softly in the background. Kenma and Kageyama face each other in their sleep, hands loosely interlocked. Hinata kicks Kageyama in the head in his sleep, and gets the pleasure of being woken up at five thirty by an elbow to his spine because of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa there, it's been a bit. Sorry. But I was really trying to get this right, and I sort of didn't have a plot planned out after chapter 3 so. I'm sorry. Had to take some time to plot, you know? Updates will probably continue to be super slow.
> 
> I am also having writers block, and my style seems a little off somehow?
> 
> "Just finished a daydream [...] And being blue is better than being over it" - P!atD's Hallelujah


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's back (back again?) I was sick for like two whole weeks on top of writers block, what kinda karma is that? Was it because I sounded so rude in my last authors note? At least it gave me ample time to read so many TV Tropes I have like a million ideas now.
> 
> I also noticed this fic has over 125 kudos and 1000 hits! That's amazing, gosh. Thank you all for your support, I hope you still like it even with the sporadic updates and ongoing plot issues \\*_*/ Are you ready for some Ushijima introspection? Me neither. Still gonna do it though! I promise the next chapter will be coming quickly. Almost frighteningly so (for me anyway).

After breakfast was finished Ushijima went on his daily jog to contemplate what he'd learned through the newspaper.

Ushijima had formed the opinion early on that soulgems meant very little as far as fairytale endings go, or even as life goes. His parents had matching gems, but hadn't needed to notice that to get along. There were many relatives who still hadn't met their match, or at least didn't know it, and were very happy (if somewhat stoically so, but that was more a family trait that anything else). The weight others placed on matching this feature with another person often lead them to plight, exhaustion, or worse. It would be much more prudent to disregard the feature entirely and just get on with your life.

He believed in his opinion so much he forgot what his soulgem even looked like. The colors and shape vanished from his mind. People he knew called it a shame, the magazines cooed that it was a tragedy. It was just how he wanted to live.

Then there was Hinata Shouyou.

Hinata was a sweet young guy, who seemed so opposite to Ushijima he hesitantly wondered why he was so attached to what little they knew about each other. They barely knew each other at all, but he knew Hinata's soulgem by heart like many others knew their own.

To say he was shocked when he found out that Hinata was his match would be... understating it, perhaps. 

(Had it come so easy to his thoughts because he still remembered his own, somewhere? Even when he rejected that part so thoroughly...)

But he believed in his knowledge of soulgems, and would not pursue Hinata just because of the gem. The little guy had only just started his highschool career, it would be selfish to try and hold him close when there was so much potential within him. Briefly, another orange haired highschool freshmen with limitless potential crossed his mind, and he barely stifled a laugh. But Hinata was real and so **close.**

He knew nothing of Hinata's beliefs about soulgems. Did he feel the same as Ushijima? Did he, like so many others, seek that match out passively? Or was it possible he was obsessed and had been looking since he'd known what to look for? Ushijima didn't know. And knowing what Hinata expected of him... Well. It could make things easier. It could make things a lot harder.

Truth be told he had no idea what exactly he was supposed to do. Maybe their match on the court had been the extent of their 'fated meeting'. Not that Ushijima wanted it to be necessarily, but without the gem tying them together, it probably would have been. After so long of rebuking that part of himself was he really ready to accept it again just because it was an excuse to spend more time with Hinata?

He spent the rest of the day pondering his decision while all too aware of his parents darting eyes and quiet words.

In the end, he sighed and turned to his computer. Hesitantly he went to the volleyball tournament's site and watched the matches of the day through, thoughts and eyes always wandering back to Hinata. 

Maybe his views were wrong, but maybe they weren't. In the end, couldn't refusing to rely on soulgems also mean refusing to let it keep him from doing something selfishly like reaching back out to Hinata because it would be 'for the best'?

Turning that thought over in his head made it make less sense, but he shrugged it off. When Hinata came back, he would try and create a bridge that might have been destroyed if it had ever been there at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need to add some tags to this, but I've got no idea which ones. whoopsies
> 
> This chapter was certainly very melancholy and all-too-short. Did I go overboard with the angst?


	7. Fuck yo feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told you this would be a scarily fast update for me. I WARNED YOU!
> 
> why are Utopia (Within Temptation+Chris Jones) and Dare Ka, Umi Wo (Zaknyou no Terror's Soundtrack) such damn good songs to write heart wrenching stuff to? I just don't understand

Karasuno claiming the title took everyone by surprise. There was a moment of silence on the court as the volleyball bounced once, twice... and a roar consumed the gym, scrambling together in the noise of "ohmygod we won, we won it all, we made it back, I can't belie-"as Nekoma raced to meet Karasuno and they laughed and laughed. The team was everywhere, clinging to each other and people didn't know why Nekoma was celebrating too and- was that Ukitake getting kissed by Takeda?

The hype didn't die down the entire bus ride home, even as some of them took catnaps that refused to be awoken by the noise for at least a fifteen minute interval. Hinata even had Kenma on Line the entire ride back, sending him updates and pictures of the mess that was the afterparty. 

Hinata stumbled off that bus with the lingering hum of adrenaline in his veins into his mom and Natsu. For a while, he forgot all about Ushijima Wakatoshi. He fell asleep on the way home to a pleasant black absence, unaware of his mother effortlessly carrying him all the way to his bed. Natsu had left a drawing of congratulation on his bedside table, and a few washable whiskers on his face. (She also sent Kenma a picture, and a :3c because hey, she's still Natsu.)

The next morning was a late one with his favorite breakfast of raw egg, just the right amount of soy sauce, and rice. Oh, and the news they needed to go to the town square for some reason Hinata didn't quite catch between drowsiness and mouthfuls of rice. That was okay though, he could work with that. Well. As long as he didn't have to bike all the way there. His calves throbbed at the thought, still sore from the rapidfire matches he'd played. 

The car ride over seemed a lot longer than it probably was, mostly because he let his mom and Natsu know about Ushijima.

"I stand by what I've said before, Hinata." Mom replied neutrally, catching his eyes in the rearview mirror. "It's gonna be hard, but you'll be fine. Don't be afraid." To let go?

When they get there his mom hands him a modest wad of bills and tells him to meet her at J&J's Pizza for an early lunch by 11:30. Natsu's already dragging her towards the candy store before the words are even completely out of her mouth and there's a small amount of mirth in her goodbyes.

It's only just ten o'clock when he finds himself wandering out of the sports goods shop and almost crashing into the very man he'd been so torn about. Ushijima stared down at him with an annoyingly neutral face as his own face reddened in a churning mixture of emotions he couldn't bother identifying. Opening his mouth, he almost got to say _something_ before-

"Oh my god!" Both boys turned to look at the girl who had yelped. Her gaze flitted between them and the phone in her friend's hands. "It's the volleyball soulgem couple, Hinata and Ushiwaka!"

Now, usually there wouldn't be a problem in this part of Miyagi, especially on a sunday. It was just plain bad luck that A) They'd been recognized B) There happened to be a special sale going on at almost every store on the Square today and C) The girl had said that loud enough everyone in their proximity turned to look and start exclaiming about it. Not to mention since soulgems in celebrities (even highschool children, if they were good enough at a sport) were a Hot Topic on every form of social media and news.

Which was how Hinata and Ushijima, without being able to say a word to each other, were forced to flee the Square together from the sudden influx of people wanted to talk, shake hands, hug, or otherwise make them uncomfortable in public.

Ushijima and Hinata lost them fairly quickly being, you know, athletes who ran everyday. Either of them would be easily qualified for either school's track and field team- and in Hinata's case, had already been suggested to do so instead of starting a volleyball team. They were hardly breathing any harder by the time Ushijima realized they'd lost the crowd. Hinata made a hairpin turn into a basketball court at top speed, still unaware they weren't being chased, until he realized Ushijima wasn't running with him anymore.

Turning around, he swallowed at the contemplating look Ushijima had on his face. Eyes darting around, he realized in a way he'd been cornered- Ushijima was standing in front of the only entrance, and high chain link fence surrounded the rest of the court. Not to say he couldn't climb the fence, but if Ushijima really wanted to talk, he had more than enough arm length to just yank him back down. Uh... Was there a bathroom around here? 

"Hinata Shouyou." Ushijima approached him, and Hinata tried to stare at him in defiance even as his hands shook. If he was stuck here, he was going to damn well figure out what the hell was going on with Ushijima.

"U-Ushijwaka!" When Ushijima didn't say anything more, Hinata plowed on. "Your soulgem matches mine, I think. I mean, yeah! So why did you hide it?"

"I did not know we matched." ...What?

"How could you not? You've seen mine clearly ever since we first met!" It was true. From the moment Hinata had looked at him and for some reason declared Japan, he'd seen the glint of orange and black in his eye. 

"I had forgotten what it looked like after so many years of not looking at it."

"Why? Do you not believe it works or something?" He furiously asked, looking like fire and confusion and teetering on the edge of fear-sadness. His eyes said all of these things and more, but Ushijima had no idea what to name the others. 

"I don't believe it leads to soulmates."

Hinata tried to swallow as his throat dried up. It was as he'd feared, all he'd hoped wouldn't be true in a handful of words. Ushijima would not love him. Worse, he would not even try. Eyes darting to the exit behind Ushjima's back, he hissed angrily and tried to push past him. Tears formed at the corners of his eyes, and he couldn't- wouldn't let Ushijima see them. He didn't matter to him, why should he let Ushijima see him cry?

Ushijima firmly pressed him back, face still unnaturally neutral. "I don't believe in the supposed power of soulgems. I don't believe that these," and here he brushed a thumb over Hinata's eyelid and almost over where the soulgem was, wiping away the tear that was forming in the same deft stroke, "hold people together. They just show that we'll be mutually important for even a brief second, and then we're free to go. The rest is up to us, just like every other relationship we'll ever have. And I... I'd like to try with you. Because of who you've been before you knew, not because of 'fate'." 

Hinata stood stock still as he turned the words over in his head. That was almost a speech coming from Ushijima. And his face... There was a small glint of hope in his eyes, and his mouth was forming a small smile the longer he looked. 

"Okay." Hiccuping, he watched as Ushijima started to smile back. "But you're going with me to lunch!" Ushijima nodded. "My mom and Natsu will be there, so you'll have to deal with them!" Another easy nod. "You're going to tell me about your parents, and what you're going to do once you graduate!" A slower nod. "A-and you owe me!"

"That I do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was so surprised at the new kudos (because it'd been so long since I updated) that here we are. I WILL NOT DISAPPOINT ANYONE ELSE **fistclench** and so I finally got Ushiwaka to MAN THE FUCK UP and admit he'd like to try. The story's not over yet! (I sorta understand why Shoujo authors usually end it pretty quickly after the couple gets together now though ;;;)
> 
> I left it sort of ambiguous as to if Karasuno actually played against Nekoma officially or not because... I just dunno if it's gonna happen? It would be perfect if they did, especially since I feel that's kind of a bigger goal for them than winning the tournament, but who knows. We probably won't find out for at least another year or two, haaha.


	8. Overcome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time to establish some happier things! But well, I mean, happier things as the warm rain thuds on my window and a lullaby of the sea that rings in my ears lets me.
> 
> Volleyball shoes are fucking expensive?? Holy shit I've never played a sport I had no idea

Ushijima follows Hinata back easily, his hand cautiously brushing with Hinata's every so often. Hinata is almost oddly quiet, but sometime he'll get a goofy look on his face as they sneak back into the square. Ushijima is much better at blending in now that he knows that they might be crowded any second and even ends up lending Hinata a beanie he'd pulled out of nowhere to cover his bright hair. Though his disguise was just parting his hair differently and putting on some glasses (prescription?) it made him look... Not harmless, but definitely less intimidating. His eyes were no longer half lidded, and a small thrill ran down Hinata's spine at seeing the matching soulgem so close.

They wander around unnoticed by the population once again as the crowds mingle and blend them together with everyone else. They still have an hour to waste before meeting the Hinata's, so they eye each other hesitantly.

"...Sports Goods?" Ushijima mumbles, watching as Hinata blinked in recognition.

"Oh! I, um, I was just going to look. If you don't want to go back in, that's fine-" But Ushijima had nodded already and clasped a calloused hand around Hinata's wrist and led him on. Hinata's mouth closed with an audible click and that goofy looking smile grew wide on his face now that Ushijima couldn't see.

It felt really nice. Being needed like this, with Ushijima's constant little bits of skinship and his occasional glances back just to make sure Hinata was still there. 

Time passed almost too quickly, and before they knew it they were inside the shop. Ushijima only realized he was still clinging to Hinata's wrist when he was tugged over to the shoe section by a much happier looking Hinata. Loosening his grip slowly, he only stopped when Hinata looked back at him curiously.

"Where're you going?"

"Nowhere."

"Then...?" Hinata stared at their now unlinked hands curiously. "You don't need to let go, you know." Hinata watched curiously as Ushijima swallowed before a small huff of laughter escaped him. "Here," and he extended his hand before entwining their fingers together loosely. Nodding, he turned back to the shoes in front of him. 

"Are you in need of new shoes?" Ushijima questioned after a few minutes of following Hinata pace along the shoes, eyes always drifting back to a pair of Mizuno's colored dark gray with a white decal and orange soles. He'd finally picked up a box in his size and almost seemed to be weighing it in one hand.

"I was just looking! I don't really have the money for a new pair right now..." Unfortunately this store was one of the few that wasn't having a sale today. Or at least, not a sale on the shoes. Hinata looked between the shoes he'd been inspecting and the price while visibly drooping.

"I'll pay." When Hinata's eyes narrowed and a shadow fell over his eyes, Ushijima quickly explained, "My conduct has been... Unbecoming, especially in my ignorance towards your feelings. I'd like to start making up for it. I'll buy the shoes."

"I don't want you to buy me the shoes just because we didn't start off that great," Hinata grumbled, but his eyes had lit back up and he bounced on his heels.

"It's a gift." There was a firmness in those words that made Hinata pause and nod in agreement. Ushijima took the box from Hinata and slowly let go of his hand as they approached the counter. The transaction took almost no time at all, and Hinata watched as Ushijima handed the cashier a credit card like it was nothing. How... How much money did Ushijima have, anyway? 

Walking out of the store, Ushijima held hands again, refusing silently to hand over the bag when Hinata tried to grab it. 

"I will carry it." And that was that. Hinata thought the action almost resembled a boy holding a girls school bag as they walked home together, but shook the thought out of his head before he could blush too noticeably. He was already getting his hopes too high... Discarding those thoughts, he tried to figure out what they were going to do next.

"Do you need to go anywhere? We could do that, try to find my mom, or head to the pizza place early!" They had wasted a good half hour inside the store, but it would still be too early for his mom to be in the pizza place. Hinata hummed as he awaited Ushijima's response, swinging their hands back and forth... back and forth...

"Dogs." Hinata paused his hand swinging to stare at Ushijima. 

"...Dogs?" 

"Over there." Ushijima barely tilted his head in the direction of a massive looking dog and... Was that a papillon next to it? The owner was lounging on a bench, looking somewhat tired but still petting her dogs slowly. 

"So, you wanna go pet the dogs? Let's go!" And Hinata had Ushijima practically dragged behind him as they rushed across the crosswalk to make it before the light turned green.

The woman on the bench turned towards them when they got close enough, cocking an eyebrow curiously. Ushijima curtly nodded his head to her before staring at the dogs again.

"Hi! Do you mind if we pet your dogs?" Hinata chripped happily at the woman, tugging Ushijima closer.

"Of course not." She smiled briefly while jesturing to the dogs. "This big mutt here is Candy, and the lil one is called Toffee. Toffee likes to lick ankles," She whispered in a conspiratorial manner, "And Candy loves her ears scratched. I'm Ana and I like to doze here."

Ushijima was already crouched in front of Toffee, gently petting her even as she yapped and nipped at his socks. Hinata's eyes softened at the scene. 

"How long have you two been dating?" Ana asked quietly, a smirk growing as she watched Hinata flush and start rubbing Candy's ears. "I see your gems match. New thing?"

"It was kind of a everyone else figured out before we did thing," Hinata huffed as he stared at Candy and her slowly thumping tail. "I was mad at him for a while because he knew what my gem looked like and he still didn't figure it out. I already sorta wished... But we did just get together like, an hour ago."

"You liked him before you found out? Talk about inevitable." Ana hummed to herself a moment before saying, "Follow your heart and all that Disney stuff. But maybe remember Ghibli if it gets hard."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates will continue to be sporadic BUT I will try to update every week until this story reaches an end. Pretty sure this is my longest official endeavor in fic. Unofficially, I wrote almost 100k words of a YGO+HP fic with a Mary Sue SI back when I was 11 that I never put outside a word document. Along with many other long shitfic since. Shhh
> 
> Ushijima in canon is more eloquent than I portray him, I fear. But hey, puppies!


	9. Pizza and Terror

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We've crossed the 10k threshold! Thanks for sticking with me thus far, I know it's been slow going ;;;

Soon enough it was getting dangerously close to when they needed to be at J&J's, so they said their goodbyes to Ana and her dogs. Hinata waved goodbye frantically as he tugged at Ushijima's wrist to get a move on, gosh. Ushijima shook Ana's hand and thanked her quietly before he relented. They'd never see her again.

It was on the way over it finally sunk in that Ushijima was going to meet Hinata's family. His face froze up as he panicked internally about how the mother of the boy he was already smitten with was going to judge him. He hadn't exactly set the best precedent, making Hinata so sad and not even noticing why until it was pointed out to him. Any mother in their right mind would have ass and probably demand he become an eunuch for good measure. Natsu was going to ask all sorts of uncomfortable questions and expect answers. Shit.

Hinata on the other hand was busy wondering exactly how much pizza his mom was going to let him eat before she forced him to stop on the pain of no more egg rice for breakfast. The prospects were looking less pleasing than he'd like with the additional burden of Ushijima's appetite. However, that being said, a guest almost guaranteed a large dessert and as much soda as he could put in his cup before they left. Now, how to keep Natsu from stealing from his plate...

At least in life their diverging priorities would allow them to cover every angle?

Luckily for Ushijima his new beau had started to notice his panic- or at least thought that it was polite to make sure Ushijima was at least able to communicate his pizza order. Halting outside the doorway, Hinata glanced at Ushijima searchingly and squeezed his hand reassuringly when he saw his frozen features.

"Mom won't eat you, you know?" The words are said lightly, but the seriousness in Hinata's eyes loosen Ushijima's tense shoulders a bit. It would be fine... Hopefully. His reward was a bright smile just before Hinata swung the door open into the tiny pizzeria to drag him inside.

The first person he saw was Natsu, who had the same unruly orange hair as her brother and a pouty expression. Across from her was a lady with short brown hair and an indulgent smile as she listened to Natsu's grumbling, who must be Hinata's mother. There was no sign of a father, and only one other chair at the table that was obviously meant for Hinata. There were only a handful of other people here, and no one except the Hinata's glanced up.

"Ah!" Natsu's face lost it's pout and her eyes grew wide with curiosity. "It's Ushiwaka-chan again! Did you get glasses?" The woman's eyes flickered to him then, an icy glint in them as she swept a critical eye over him. Swallowing his fear, he bowed his head briefly to her.

"Yes." He answered Natsu quietly as he detached himself from Hinata to grab another chair. 

"We ran into each other at the sports shop," Hinata answered his mother's unsaid question as he sat down beside her. "There was this crowd and a whole lot of stuff happened! Did you guys meet Ana, the dog lady?"

"There were dogs?!" And now Natsu was reaching over the table with grabby hands to try and get Hinata to give her the information she wanted. "Where!?" 

"You can ask him while you guys go up to order," Their mom drawled, handing Hinata a credit card and smiling serenely as he gave her a confused look. "Has Ushijima told you what he wanted?" 

"Cheese." Oh god, he was definitely back to one word answers. Why did Hinata have to leave him here, alone, with his mom?

"Okay! Be right back," And Hinata was already halfway across the room before Ushijima had time to blink. 

Turning back to the surprisingly intimidating woman, he shrunk inwards at her gaze. It wasn't particularly stern or angry, but he felt very concerned whenever she looked him in the eye. She raised her hands above the table and methodically began cracking her knuckles by pressing her thumb to the inner joints one by one.

"We both know what's going on, so I'll skip ahead. I love Shouyou," She said quietly, her eyes sparkling with a light pink gem as her right pupil that contrasted with the brown in her iris sharply. "It's possible you will too, one day. Right now all I know is you're already broken my childs' heart once, and you're somehow here eating lunch with our family. He brought you here of course. I somehow doubt you wanted your first date to be... this." Waving between the two of them, she gave him a brittle smile. "But I know better than anyone that soulgems do not mean you stay together forever, boy." There was a weight behind those words that made Ushijima shiver, and wondered again why Hinata didn't seem to have any family outside his mom and sister.

"You don't have to believe they work to give Shouyou a chance, and I'm glad you realized that. He deserves a chance. Maybe you do too. All you have to do is try." Her smile turned softer at that. "Will you do that for me?"

"I will try," Oh, he can speak again, lovely. "Not just for you of course." Staring into his eyes, she nods slowly and relaxes back into her chair. Her hands drift back down to her lap.

"Good. So who are you beyond Ushijima Wakatoshi, Volleyball extraordinaire? Who do you live with?"

"I rather like Biology and Agriculture," As his habit of using farming metaphors often suggested, "Although I intend to play professionally as long as I'm allowed. My parents are both at work a lot but we talk in the mornings. Mother works as a Junior Partner in a firm, and my papa works at Nissan. They're matched as well." Glancing up from the table, their eyes locked and Ushijima pondered what to say next. "Is there anything important I should know as not to upset Hinata anymore?"

"Well, my family line have all been Soul Gem horoscope makers," She admitted. "Shouyou has embraced it as part of himself. He's actually matched a few of his friends up recently, like that Yamaguchi boy with that setter- Oikawa, was it?" Ushijima nodded automatically, taking it in. Yamaguchi had been a tall but shy looking boy at first, but their match had proven he was sly and determined on the court. Maybe he could help curb Oikawa's less appropriate behaviors?

[Yamaguchi had sneezed first, and Oikawa was busy laughing about how much it'd sounded like a kitten when suddenly he sneezed and Yamaguchi started laughing harder because it echoed, oh my god that was so loud, I'm gonna tell all your fangirls-]

"He's very attached to his beliefs about soul gems, so you really upset him when you ignored him like that."

"I... Actually didn't know we matched until my parents pointed it out to me when they saw it in the paper..." It wasn't something he wanted to admit to his boyfriend's mother, but well. It was probably better than saying he'd ignored Hinata like a douchebag?

"There was something about it in the paper?" They blinked back and forth at eachother for a bit.

"Yes? We were kind of mobbed an hour or two ago because of it..."

Ushijima was spared explaining anything else when Hinata and Natsu finally wandered back to the table, four plastic cups clutched tightly in Natsu's mits.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I hear someone expecting a OiYama and UshiHina double date? That gives me an ideaaa~
> 
> I may have been basing Hinata's Mum backstory vibes off some Into the Woods thoughts... Damn catchy songs. Also, I couldn't find what Ushijima's favorite food is, so I made him boring like me and order plain cheese pizza. I could have made him order beef, but that would be too obvious. Cow Island...


End file.
